Health Law Complicates Filing Season For Many

This tax season, for the first time since the health law passed five years ago, consumers are facing its financial consequences. Whether they owe a penalty for not having health insurance or have to reconcile how much they got in premium tax credits against their incomes, many people have to contend with new tax forms and calculations. Experts say the worst may be yet to come. Half of people who received premium tax credits would have to repay some portion of the amount, according to estimates by The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF). Forty-five percent would get a refund, according to the KFF analysis. The average repayment and the average refund would both be a little under $800. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)

Tax preparer H&R Block has also looked at the issue. It reported that 52 percent of people who enrolled in coverage on the exchanges had to repay an average of $530 in premium tax credits, according to an analysis of the first six weeks of returns filed through tax preparer. About a third of marketplace enrollees got a tax credit refund of $365 on average, according to H&R Block.